


I love you (with a touch of tragedy and quite madly)

by Some_Dead_Guy



Series: Grindeldore Oneshots [1]
Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies), Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Character Study, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Reunions, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings, albus joins gellert, but it’s kinda there, i just kinda fell for this ship and I had to write something, kinda i guess, this is mostly only mildly fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-03
Updated: 2019-10-03
Packaged: 2020-11-22 08:47:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20871452
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Some_Dead_Guy/pseuds/Some_Dead_Guy
Summary: What if Albus had attended Gellert’s rally in Paris, and decided to join him?





	I love you (with a touch of tragedy and quite madly)

**Author's Note:**

> This isn’t beta-read so please excuse the mistakes. 
> 
> This is mostly just an emotional spiel of all my messy emotions about this ship lmao.

When Albus hears of Gellert’s rally in Paris, he’s already leaving before he can truly think of a plan. If he knows Gellert, he knows that the Aurors have caught onto his invitations. Albus knows he wouldn’t be able to pass up the opportunity for theatrics.

He tells himself that he needs to attend so he can watch over the Aurors and stop them from doing anything drastic. Albus knows Gellert will wait for them to attack first, making the Aurors out to be the aggressive ones. Them intervening will only add fuel to the flame of Gellert’s expanding number of followers. 

He tells himself this is the only reason because he knows he’s in no emotional state to face the part of him that has a fluttering heart and feels little flits of excitement at the thought of mismatched eyes and light hair.

He tries not to think of this as the perfect excuse to see the man who has been haunting his dreams ever since he left, tries not to think of the fact he’s been  _ looking _ for an excuse. And maybe he’s just too stuck in memories he can’t get rid of, and maybe if he sees Gellert, sees who he is now and realizes just how different he is compared to who he was in their youth he’ll finally be able to give him up. (It’s a lie, an incredibly desperate one).

He enters discreetly and stands behind everyone near a pillar, taking a place that gives him a clear view of the circle where Gellert will be standing but out of sight. His heart is thundering wildly in his chest, and his skin is tingling before he can even see Gellert.

When Gellert walks out his whole body feels as if it’s engulfed in fire.

Gellert’s obviously older, but he’s still unmistakable. His skin still pale in color, and his eyes ever so captivating. Though, Albus is sure he’d be able to recognize Gellert no matter what he would come to look like.

Gellert begins to speak, and Albus breathes in deeply, incapable of not becoming entranced with Gellert’s pacing and his calm voice. He’s always resembled a predator, regal and arrogant almost to a fault. His face passes into emotions he wants others to see, each movement calculated to present a specific feeling.

Albus watches him, and almost chokes when he sees their blood pact. It’s plainly over Gellert’s heart, perfectly visible for anyone to see. It has no tactical vantage, more dangerous when it’s out in the open as it is. Albus can’t think of any reason for Gellert to display it like this, especially over his  _ heart. _ Well, he can’t come up with any other reason than… sentiment. The  _ bastard. _

His breath stutters at the realization. Gellert is still just as effective on Albus as he ever was, incomparable to anyone else.

The thought is enough for Albus to flush pleasantly. 

Albus smiles tentatively after a beat, overcome with memories of all the moments they had spent together. They were so young, and Albus was so  _ in love _ that he was drowning in it. He was so stuck up on Gellert, so enraptured that he could convince himself that someone so brilliant could be the only person in his world and he’d die happy. 

He remembers red lips and fumbling exploration, roaming fingers and holding hands. He thinks of promises of revolutions and love and devotion. They had made that blood pact and Albus wants to say he regrets it, but he can’t. They were supposed to rise together, take on everyone and everything and Albus thought Gellert was the only one he would ever need.

Perhaps they could still fall together. 

Gellert speaks, walking in circles and gaze roaming the crowd, and Albus sees why all these people could believe in him. Maybe he understands more than anyone, how easy it is to fall into his words, his charisma. 

Albus had hung onto his every word, and it’s hard not to do so again. Hearing him again is precious and bittersweet and overwhelming all at once and he listens with rapt attention as he’s swimming in memories.

One of his acolytes walk up to him with a skull in their hands, a slight dramatic touch that has Albus’s heart tightening with old fondness. Gellert breathes in the smoke, blowing it out as it forms a vision.

Albus stares in awe and horror, in awe of Gellert’s powers as a seer and then in horror at the contents of the image.  _ We can’t afford another war  _ Albus thinks, and it seems everyone else in the room knows this as they watch. Albus wants to think it’s a simple illusion, that Gellert is lying and is trying to strike fear into the hearts of others, but there’s an awful sense of dread crawling up his spine as he observes the destruction, and he knows that this is real and not a trick.

It evaporates and everyone is left mulling it over, whispering amongst themselves before silencing again as Gellert continues speaking. 

Gellert announces the presence of Aurors and although Albus is unsurprised, all hell breaks loose. Witches and wizards leave in a flurry of spells and noise, only Albus, Aurors, Newt Scamander, and a select few left.

Gellert surrounds himself in a ring of blue flame, elegant as he turns and waves his wand. Albus sees people, followers, join him. They walk harmlessly through the ring and retreat to safety. 

Then, foolishly, a man approaches the fire and is disintegrated right before Gellert. Albus clenches his fists, but says nothing nor makes himself known.

“Aurors,” Gellert speaks, holding out his arms, “join me in this circle. Pledge to me your eternal allegiance or die. Only here shall you know freedom. Only here shall you know yourself.” He almost sounds whimsical, sure in his claims as he strides with a confidence that is familiar. 

Albus’s heart palpitates, beating loudly in his ears as he listens.  _ Only here shall you know yourself,  _ and Albus has thought of words such as that many times over. One of the reasons it made it so easy to love Gellert was  _ that. _ Albus could be himself, be understood and accepted by Gellert with no judgements. 

Albus feels ridiculous, trying to convince himself that coming here would make him somehow move past Gellert. Ridiculous for thinking he wouldn’t be able to see the Gellert he had known during bouts of passion and pure, unadulterated love all those years ago. This man is so obviously Gellert that it’s painful. 

His feet itch with the urge to step forward. 

So he does.

Desire overcomes guilt and apprehension, the all encompassing need to get closer to a man he’s always been drawn to pulling him forward. His feet move down the steps, and he almost feels like he’s in a trance but is completely aware of what he’s doing all at the same time.

Gellert whips towards him, the only crack in his composure he’s seen the whole night. His eyes widen fractionally and his mouth falls open slightly in a silent gasp of wonder. Albus ignores the murmuring he hears, the quiet gasps as the Aurors recognize him. He can pick out the moment the Scamanders notice him.

“Albus.” Gellert whispers, reverently. It’s near deafening in the shocked silence, and Albus knows everyone hears what Gellert has said.

He can’t bring himself to care. “Gellert.” He whispers back, just as quiet and soft. Albus smiles, serene and a bit mad. His whole body is thrumming with  _ want _ , and Gellert is only a few steps away. He could easily move forward, move the little ways down that he needs to and he can be in Gellert’s arms again for the first time in decades.

Gellert smiles back, a genuine one that lacks any undertone of violence or manipulation. It’s a reluctant, rare sweetness that Albus remembers from their youth.

“Mein Schatz.” Gellert holds out his hand. “Love, please.”

Albus’s breath catches in his throat and he swallows thickly. He stares at the expecting hand, and it becomes more tempting every second that passes. As soon as he moves his arm up to reach out he hears those behind him call out in panic, breaking out of their silent reverie.

“Professor!” Newt yells, but no one dares move toward the pair. “Professor don’t, please.”

Albus’s attention stays focused on Gellert despite his pleading, finding himself hopelessly lost in heterochromatic eyes.

“Professor, he doesn’t actually know you. He wouldn’t care what happened to you. You can’t listen to him.” Theseus’s firm voice speaks up this time, and it’s the completely wrong thing to say.

“He knows me.” He murmurs, nostalgic with the weight of his own voice, “You know me more than anyone else.” Albus is reaching for Gellert’s hand again, “You know me more than I know myself.”

Their fingers touch, and Albus is already drunk on the feeling. Gellert pulls him into the ring, grasping his hand tightly even as they’re centimeters apart. They’re close, so, so close and it’s more than Albus ever thought he’d be able to experience again.

“Liebling,” Gellert’s breath is warm against Albus’s lips, and his voice fills his ears. “Oh how I’ve missed you.” A hand comes to Albus’s cheek, stroking his face in a way far too gentle for someone capable of such destruction.

Albus thinks he can hear crying, but then Gellert kisses him and everything around him fades. He is transported back to summers of long ago, to the heat and the beginning of their love, and he kisses back as his hands grasp at Gellert’s face and coat desperately.

Everything is masked from his view other than Gellert, and they’re spelled away before Albus can even begin to think of anything other than Gellert’s skin and lips and hair.

He loved him.

He  _ loves  _ him, and it’s all horribly tragic and mad but Albus is far too gone to care.

And the world  _ burns  _ for it.

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> I haven’t seen the movie but feel ass over tit for this ship anyway lmao. 
> 
> There a bit of canonical contradictions, but let’s pretend Albus wasn’t visited by Aurors and therefore didn’t get the opportunity to warn Theseus about not breaking up the rally and decided to just go by himself.
> 
> Also, he kinda wanted to see his kinda-not-boyfriend but still kinda is again.


End file.
